Designing and testing self-help interventions (original) (raw)
Related papers
Handbook of Self-Help Therapies
Routledge eBooks, 2007
Self-Help Interventions Mapping the Role of Self-Administered Treatments in Health Care GEORGE A. CLUM Th e last 30 years have witnessed the publication of a torrent of books aimed at transforming the average American citizen into a successful business and fi nancial entrepreneur who is at once thin, muscular, fi t, free of illness and disease, and content with life. Th is transformation is to be achieved at the hands of none other than the average citizen herself, for the vehicle that will provide this metamorphosis is the self-help book or program in the hands of this same citizen. In the health arena, this change guru might be someone who has personally overcome disease or disorder or who has systematized an approach whose change formula will help suff erers overcome their defi ciencies. Th e number of books dedicated to this enterprise has expanded to the point where the New York Times provides a separate rating system of the most successful. Clearly, the self-help book has become a major factor in the domain of self-improvement. Th e assumption of the majority of these books is that the success stories detailed within will provide the motivational prod to stir the consumer to action and that, once so stirred, the technology advocated will be employed and the intended change produced. Th e extrapolated message is obvious: " I've been able to do it. Follow my formula and you will too!" or "I've shown that this formula has transformed others. Use it and transform yourself!" Almost without exception, the purveyors of change have failed to examine whether ER51712_C003.indd 41 ER51712_C003.
Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 2011
The effectiveness of self-help materials may be constrained by failures to undertake recommended exercises or to deploy the techniques that one has learned at the critical moment. The present randomized controlled trial investigated whether augmenting self-help materials with if-then plans (or implementation intentions) could overcome these problems and enhance the self-management of anxiety symptoms. Method: At baseline, participants who reported anxiety symptoms completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the state version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Participants were then randomized via a computer program to standard self-help (n ϭ 86), augmented self-help (n ϭ 90), or no-intervention (n ϭ 86) conditions. Eight weeks later, 95% (n ϭ 249) of the participants completed the HADS and STAI again. Results: Findings showed a significant reduction in anxiety in the augmented self-help condition compared with both the standard self-help and nointervention conditions (caseness rates on the HADS at follow-up were 21%, 49%, and 44%, respectively). Mediation analyses indicated that the benefits of augmented self-help materials were explained by improved detection of anxiety-related triggers and greater experienced benefits of the self-help techniques. Conclusions: These findings suggest that implementation intentions offer a valuable supplement to self-help materials that can enhance their impact on outcomes.
Integrating self-help materials into mental health practice
Canadian family physician Médecin de famille canadien, 2008
Patients' mental health issues have become an increasing focus of Canadian family physicians' practices. A self-help approach can help meet this demand, but there are few guidelines for professionals about how to use mental health self-help resources effectively. To aid health professionals in integrating self-help materials into their mental health practices. A resource library of print, audiotape, and videotape self-help materials about common mental health issues was developed for a rural community. The materials were prescreened in order to ensure high quality, and health professionals were given training on how to integrate self-help into their practices. The library was actively used by both health professionals and community members, and most resources were borrowed, particularly the nonprint materials. Health professionals viewed the resources as a way to supplement their mental health practice and reduce demands on their time, as patients generally worked through th...
An Introduction to Psychosocial Interventions
Psychosocial Interventions in Mental Health Nursing, 2015
Domain 1: Professional values 4.1 Mental health nurses must work with people in a way that values, respects and explores the meaning of their individual lived experiences of mental health problems, to provide person-centred and recovery-focused practice. 5. All nurses must fully understand the nurse's various roles, responsibilities and functions, and adapt their practice to meet the changing needs of people, groups, communities and populations. Domain 2: Communication and interpersonal skills Mental health nurses must practise in a way that focuses on the therapeutic use of self. They must draw on a range of methods of engaging with people of all ages experiencing mental health problems, and those important to them, to develop and maintain therapeutic relationships. They must work alongside people, using a range of interpersonal approaches and skills to help them explore and make sense of their experiences in a way that promotes recovery. 5. All nurses must use therapeutic principles to engage, maintain and, where appropriate, disengage from professional caring relationships, and must always respect professional boundaries. 5.1 Mental health nurses must use their personal qualities, experiences and interpersonal skills to develop and maintain therapeutic, recovery-focused relationships with people and therapeutic groups. They must be aware of their own mental health, and know when to share aspects NMC Essential Skills Clusters (ESCs) Cluster: Care, compassion and communication 6. People can trust the newly registered graduate nurse to engage therapeutically and actively listen to their needs and concerns, responding using skills that are helpful, providing information that is clear, accurate, meaningful and free from jargon.
The Cognitive Behaviour Therapist
Guided CBT self-help represents a low-intensity intervention to deliver evidence-based psychological therapy within the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme. Best practice guidance highlighting characteristics associated with CBT self-help is available to help services reach decisions regarding which interventions to adopt. However, at present a single process to evaluate written CBT self-help interventions informed by guidance is lacking. This study reports on the development of a standardised criteria-driven process that can be used to determine the extent written CBT self-help interventions are consistent with guidance regarding the fundamental characteristics of low-intensity CBT and high-quality written patient information. Following development, the process was piloted on 51 IAPT services, with 23 interventions identified as representing free-to-use written CBT self-help interventions. Overall, inter-rater reliability was acceptable. Following applicati...